In the last four weeks after I got hold of an Asus Eee PC, it has become my tag along personal computing device. It has served me well and here are some of the nitty gritty details I’d like to share about it.

I’ll break them down to 10 things you need to know about the Eee PC:

1.) The Size. It’s so small and lightweight you won’t think you’re lugging a full-featured laptop. At 920 grams, it’s like carrying a 200-page hardbound pocketbook. For people who always need to have a laptop everywhere they go, the Eee PC will fit the bill 9 out of 10 times.

3.) The Design. Simple, clean, no-fancy design adds more points in the cutesy department. The matte texture of the chassis helps avoid grime and smudges. The black version is exceptionally elegant that others would think it’s a 100k sub-notebook.

4.) The Storage. The regular 4GB solid-state drive may be too lacking to many but that’s a limitation of the SSD technology and the cost and not the laptop itself. I’m sure once the 16GB and 32GB flash drives become more available and cheaper, Asus will follow suit. Besides, that doesn’t stop users from offloading large media files into external USB drives; the Eee PC has 3 ports for them.

5.) The OS. Though most of the models come loaded with the Xandros OS, newer ones are available in Windows XP. If not, you can always reformat and install XP or any other operating system you fancy. The 4/8GB models can be upgraded up to 2GB RAM but Xandros only supports 1GB. From my count, the system boots at 28 secs., restarts at 40 Secs., and shuts down in less than 7 secs.

7.) The Display. The 7-inch (17.8cm, diagonal) TFT LCD display supports a native 800×480 pixel screen resolution which is a little odd since it often creates horizontal scroll-bars when browsing the net most of the time. The VGA port can be used to hook up to an external monitor and can effectively expand the screen to 1600Ã—1280 pixels. Since the LED is backlit, display quality is fairly good and does not strain the user’s eye on prolonged use.

8.) The Durability. There are no mechanically moving parts in the Eee PC and the absence of an optical drive makes it less prone to shock. I’ve already dropped mine at the height of about 2 feet (while powered on) with no problems. The exterior coating also helps in preventing minor scratches and scrapes.

9.) Battery Life. Small devices tend to carry smaller battery sizes but the Eee PC can still squeeze more juice. Battery life of the entire Eee range is rated between 2:45 hours and 3:30 hours. My repeated use from full charge to full drain was just around 3 hours (Wifi was mostly on and running).

10.) The Downside. Nothing much really. The usual discomfort I’ve experienced is with the cramped keyboard. Obviously, what can you expect from a keyboard that is as wide as your hands placed side by side? Typing could be a bit awkward at first. The trackpad is also smaller and may take some time to get used to.

The Asus Eee PC is the first sub-20k laptop to ever be commercially available in the Philippines. IMO, the price is a huge factor for its apparent popularity and overall performance is best bang for the buck.

@brianb hmm possible din, if they lower down the prices of the laptops then will buy them here rather buying them in the us.. But does not actually apply toa ll Apple computers are quite cheaper in the US pero pagdating dito almost 10k angadditional the reason daw is that the taxes that comes with it according to Laptop sellers.

We are the texting capital so phone do tend to be cheaper here hehehe..

finally, i was able to find a good review of this gadget. care to share how much did you buy it, how much it is priced now, and where to buy it cheaper? i was considering to cut my expenses just to have it.

Yes ,the battery is strong enough.
it have two types one contain 4 cells with a capacity of 5200 mAh,and the other with a capacity more the 6000 mAh.also in the market there is a replacement battery for Asus eee pc with a capacity of 4400 mAh ,see:http://www.canada-batteries.ca/asus-eee-pc-battery.htm

Thanks for your informative assessment of the Asus Eee PC 701. I’m set to buy my own soon, and I should like to ask you some questions about the model before I proceed with my canvassing:

(1) Is it really necessary to upgrade the RAM from 512 KB to 1GB? When is upgrading (which carries additional cost) necessary at the outset?

(2) Is it true that there’s a problem interfacing the model with a webcam, as confided in me by some salespersons at Silicon Valley? How can this problem be addressed?

(3) Is it also true that the yahoo messenger can only be used if and only if the OS is changed?

(4) Would it be possible to install several applications in the model without compromising its speed and operating efficiency?

I’m asking all these questions as I intend to buy a 4 GB model. I’m still thinking about having its RAM upgraded and about its OS changed (if necessary to support yahoo messenger chatting) upon purchase.

If you want a webcam buy the model with the one built in then no problems.

If you want to use YM you will need to remove Xandros and use WinXP. With Xandros you can use GAIM for messaging but can’t use the cam and its a real pain to get running.

I’ve been using my EEE for months with YM for video chat no problem, but using WinXP and 512MB ram. With Xandros could not make it work.

For appps it is no problem if you do it right. Do not install to the hard drive or it gets full very fast. Buy a 8gb (or larger) SD card and put in SD slot. Install programs on that and no problems. Got lots of programs on my 8Gb SD drive and all working great.

Some suggestions would be a foldable keyboard that splits in half when in storage, Much like the IBM keyboards of yesteryears or even the PALMTOP keyboard-like thingy. It was alot easier to type with those.

asus eeepc900 is fine for its price and size. but whats the best laptop in the market interms of price, quality, clarity, size, features and durability? the best laptop that you can get for the best price and features?